Healthy. Jointly!

Renato Vivanco, medical specialist for the Occupational Medical Service at the University of Stuttgart, answers questions about corona

Question 1: What should I do if my corona app displays red?

Vivanco: the corona app displays your own personal risk of catching Corona. The app works by recognising mobile telephones in the area, and when someone has a positive corona test, this is registered by the app and it issues a risk assessment after evaluating the duration and proximity of contact. In many cases, the app shows a green light and displays one or two contacts with corona. In such cases, you don't need to do anything, because these contacts were only short and at an acceptable distance. If the app displays a red light, this means that the contract was for a period of more than ten minutes and that it was relatively close. In such cases, there is an increased risk, and you should report to the Health Authority or your GP."

Question 2: What does it mean if you are a contact person in category I or II ?

Vivanco: "For a contact person in category I you must differentiate between contact person A and B. For contact person A in category I there was relatively close face-to-face contact without a mask, so that one can assume that droplet infection may have taken place. Contact person B in category I wore a mask, but maybe just a simple cotton mask. The contact wasn’t particularly close, but it was for a longer period of time, and there is a risk that you might have been infected via aerosols. For category I contacts, there is a significantly increase risk that they have been infected with the corona virus. These people will also be tested. The Health Authority requires that people in this category take a corona test. For category II contacts there was no face-to-face contact with an infected person. Or: if there was face-to-face contact, it was only for a short period, so that the risk of infection is low. These people should be careful, avoid contact with others and work from home where possible, but they are not required to go into quarantine.”

Renato Vivanco, medical specialist for the Occupational Medical Service at the University of Stuttgart, answers 3 questions about corona

Question 1: What symptoms can I have and still go to work and when must I stay at home?

Vivanco: "In terms of a cold symptomatology, or a corona symptomatology, you must be aware of the following points: there are three important symptoms that indicate a possible case of corona. The first is that you feel very unwell and even develop a fever. The second is a dry cough. The third symptom is an inhibited sense of smell and taste. With the dry cough, it is very dry at the beginning – no mucus is produced, it is more of a dry, tickly cough. This cough becomes a chestier cough as the illness progresses, but at the beginning it is dry. If you don’t feel well or have a sore throat or maybe aching joints then it is more likely to be a cold. Of course, it is important to judge for yourself how bad your symptoms are, how ill you are feeling, and to decide that, although you might not have corona, it is nevertheless a good idea to stay home if you have a bad cold."

Question 2: When should I work from home and when should I call in sick?

Vivanco: "Due to dynamically developing corona pandemic in Germany, particularly in the South-West, it is important to say that working from home is preferential. You should work from home if possible. Please discuss this with your supervisor. But working from home means that you are able to work. This means, if you are well and are able to work from home then please work from home. But if you are feeling ill, then you are not able to work. Even though you might have a University of Stuttgart Notebook at home, please don’t work if you are not well. This is very important. If this is the case, please call in sick and stay at home and rest until you feel better. It is not a good idea to work from home if you are ill, because it will take you longer to recover."

Question 3: I met with someone who has since tested positive for corona. What should I do?

Vivanco: "If you are a contact person in category I there is a very clear answer. In accordance with the University of Stuttgart’s Corona Guidelines, you are banned from entering any university premises for 14 days, regardless of whether you test negative during this time. If you have had contact with someone who has since tested positive for corona, then you must work from home. Do not come to the university during this time!"

Renato Vivanco, medical specialist at the University of Stuttgart’s Occupational Medical Service, answers questions about corona 

Question 1: What exactly does it mean if I am told I must go into quarantine? Am I allowed to go outside at all?

Vivanco: Only the Health Authority can order you to go into quarantine. If someone is in quarantine they must stay at home. That means that you should not go shopping or take the dog for a walk. The person in quarantine must remain at home. And that is why it is necessary to have support from neighbors or relatives, so that they can do your shopping. You are not even allowed to put the rubbish in the cellar. You must leave it by your door and ask someone to dispose of it for you. Quarantine really does mean: do not leave the house.

Question 2: someone in my household is in quarantine. How does this affect me?

Vivanco: If my partner or child - so someone in my household - is in quarantine, this means that that person has either tested positive for corona, or that they are a category I contact person. If this person has tested positive and I live with them, meaning I have direct contact, then I am also a category I contact person. This means that I must also stay at home. The University of Stuttgart's Corona Guidelines clearly states: I am banned from accessing all university premises for 14 days. If the person in my household is in quarantine because they are a category I contact person, then I am a category II contact person. I have not had direct contact with an infected person. This means that I may to go uni or to work. I am not subject to a quarantine order. I should be careful, of course, but I do not need to stay at home.

Renato Vivanco, medical specialist for the Occupational Medical Service at the University of Stuttgart, answers questions about corona

Question 1: I have a positive Sars CoV-2- Test result. What now?

Vivanco: That means that as soon as I receive these results from the laboratory or from my doctor, I must go into quarantine immediately. Quarantine means that I must stay at home. The Health Authority will be informed automatically, I don't need to do anything. At the moment, the Health Authority is extremely busy, and it may be the case that the Health Authority doesn't contact me immediately, but maybe two or three day later. But even if this is the case, I must stay at home and here, I appeal to your sense of responsibility.  So, if I have a positive test result and the Health Authority contacts me, this marks the beginning of the official quarantine period. I will receive very personal and specific information about what I must do. This includes things like writing my symptoms down in a diary. Please do this! Then I can see exactly when the symptoms went away. The quarantine period is usually for a period of 10 to 14 days, but I must also stay in quarantine until I no longer have any symptoms. The Health Authority states that the end of the quarantine period is marked not only be the end of the official time spent in quarantine, but also only after I have no symptoms for two days.

Question 2: The quarantine period has ended, and I no longer have symptoms. Can I go to uni?

Vivanco: There are two possibilities: either, you are contact person and have completed your quarantine, then there is the question of what you have to do now so that you may go to uni. The university's Corona Guidelines state that you are banned from university premises for 14 days. I ask that anyone who has been in quarantine to contact the Occupational Medical Service (AMD). Then we can decide over the telephone if it is necessary for you to remain at home a little longer, or not.

The second possibility is that you have tested positive for corona. If this is the case, you must phone the AMD at the end of the quarantine period. Then we can decide if you may return to uni, or if further measures are necessary, such as a second test. We have received conflicting information about the quarantine period. We have heard that the Health Authority has shortened the quarantine period from 14 to ten days. Anything is possible, and lots of things are likely to change. Please also be aware that the uni has its own rules. These are documented in the Corona Guidelines and it is entirely possible that they are different to other Corona regulations because we take the university's responsibilities extremely seriously. You must check the homepage regularly for updates and phone the AMD to find out what your responsibilities are.

Renato Vivanco, medical specialist for the Occupational Medical Service at the University of Stuttgart, answers questions about corona

Question 1: Is it important to have a flu vaccination?

Vivanco: I would compare this with sport: sport for our immune system. The flu vaccination has little to do with a Corona vaccination, but if I train my immune system - also to fight similar viruses - then there is a chance that I will be more able to fight off corona.

Question 2: Will it help me to fight off corona if I have a strong immune system? If so, how can I achieve this?

Vivanco: a well-trained immune system will not necessarily be better able to fight all illnesses. I recommend fresh air, sport, movement - these are things that help to strengthen the immune system. Ultimately, a positive lifestyle and a healthy diet are the best things that we can do to for our immune system. I can't recommend any particular means or medicine, but a healthy lifestyle is important. The university also has a lot to offer in this sense: for example, the sport science department offers courses for people working from home and the Health Management Department has also developed a number of interesting projects. We will also be doing more in this direction over the next few months.

Renato Vivanco, medical specialist for the Occupational Medical Service at the University of Stuttgart, answers questions about corona

Question 1: Tell us about the corona test options.

Vivanco: Generally speaking, there are three options for getting tested for corona, so three different methods: the antibody test method, the rapid antigen test and the PCR test. The antibody test uses a blood sample. These tests tell us if an infection has already taken place, but they don’t tell us if the infection is acute or not. For that reason, these tests are not considered particularly useful. The tests also don’t tell us how many antibodies are present after an infection has taken place, which is why they are generally not very important. The antigen tests are conducting by swabbing the nose and throat. These tests are very accurate and have become almost as important as the PCR tests. However, these tests are usually not chosen, because the most reliable tests are the PCR tests. PCR tests are prescribed by the Health Authority, your doctor, or an emergency outpatient clinic. These tests are conducted by taking a swab of the inside of the nose and throat and the swab samples are then sent to a laboratory. These provide extremely reliable results. But what should we do if we need to find out very quickly if we are positive or negative? In this case we use the antigen rapid test, but before the test is carried out, you must clarify with the health authority, your doctor, or the outpatient clinic, whether a rapid test is an option in your case or not.

Question 2: When do I have to take a test? 

Vivanco: You will be tested if you have corona symptoms – of course. We have already addressed this topic: if you have a dry cough, or an inhibited sense of taste or smell. If you have such symptoms, you should take a test. The decision to carry out a test is made by the health authority, your doctor, or a corona clinic. But what about contact people? This is interesting. The current rule is that due to the workload at the laboratories, people with no symptoms that are a category I contact person do not necessarily need to be tested, they are first ordered to go into quarantine. People in this situation must only be tested if they develop symptoms. The idea is to save the tests for use only when it is necessary.